Always and Forever
by dumbleton
Summary: During a war, can one lost soul find her soulmate?


It was late at night. The stars shone brightly up in the sky, the moonlight illuminating her face in the darkness. The silence was comforting to her as she desperately searched for an escape from the harsh reality that she faced everyday. The night offered her peace, the only peace that she could find in this dark world. Despite their best efforts, Voldemort had steadily been gaining power throughout the Wizarding World. And although they fought him every step of the way, there were sometimes that she wondered if there was any point anymore. He seemed too powerful for them, too cunning. But she would never give up on this fight to save humanity for this monster.

The world she lived in now was a dark place, so much darker than when she first entered it ten years ago, at the tender age of 11. She had been innocent and pure, uncorrupted by the evil that seeped through their beloved world today. But the Burrow was the one place that she could find some kind of peace to the unending bitterness of life. She loved to wander through the fields surrounding the quaint house. These things - the little flowers growing in the ground, the trees towering over her small figure...this was what she was fighting for. She was fighting for the survival of life and of the world.

Lying down on the grass, she thought of how difficult life had been for all of them. They all struggled to cope with the hardness of the war. They all had their own demons to deal with, their own inner turmoil that they dare not speak of. She often wondered how she got herself into this war. It didn't help that she was a muggleborn witch, but the main factor was the close friendship that she had with Harry Potter, the one who Voldemort sought to destroy and he was willing to go to any means to do this. Not only did he want him dead, but he wanted him to suffer.

And suffer he did as more and more people were killed. She sighed, covering her face with her hands. She didn't think that she could bear to hear of someone else who was gone forever. She dreaded leaving her friends, in case she never saw them again. But everyday she put up her armour and remained strong for Harry.

Harry. Her heart beat faster as she thought of him. He was their saviour. And it was him that she was truly fighting for. She longed deeply to see him free of this burden he'd carried all his life. He deserved to live, he deserved so much for all the suffering that he'd been forced to endure throughout his life. So she was always there for him, supporting him in everything that he did, comforting him after the inevitable bad news, held him when he woke from a nightmare, screaming and crying. Harry came first, no matter what. She didn't care about herself anymore, just as long as he was ok. That was all that mattered in her world.

She didn't know how long she'd loved him. It could've been the very first time that they met for all she knew. Hermione loved him with all of her heart and she would do anything for him. But it still tore her apart to know that he didn't care for her like she cared for him. He showed no indication of knowing how she felt, or reciprocating her feelings either. Her heart ached to be with him. She loved him so much that it hurt to think of him not being with her, but she didn't think she could take being around him anymore. The ten years that she'd known him had taken everything from her and she wasn't sure if she had anything else to give. She knew she had to leave soon before she was pulled in too far and was unable to save herself. But deep down, she knew that it had already happened. She knew that she would never be strong enough to leave and to live a life without him in it.

Even now, pain coursed through her veins thinking about him and how he'd never love her. She was addicted to him, but her addiction was hurting her to the very core of her being. None of her scars could be seen, no one knew of the pain she suffered every minute of every day. Her pain and scars were deep down inside of her where no one dared to look.

She sat up slowly, blinking away the tears that she hid from the world. She'd never felt as alone as she did now. There was nobody to share her secret, her pain, with. As a little girl, she had always loved being alone and the peace that it brought. Growing up, it was what she was used to. All of that had changed however, because of Harry. The loneliness she once wished for, she now despised.

She wiped fiercely at her eyes in an attempt to stop the tears flowing down her cheeks. Why wasn't he there to comfort her, to hold her like she had done for him on so many occasions? Why couldn't he make this pain that she endured go away?

Looking up to the Heavens, she softly sung to herself, desperately hoping to ease the ache inside of her.

_I'm so tired of being here  
Suppressed by all my childish fears  
And if you have to leave  
I wish that you would just leave  
'Cause your presence still lingers here  
And it won't leave me alone_

_These wounds won't seem to heal  
This pain is just too real  
There's just too much that time cannot erase_

_When you cried I'd wipe away all of your tears  
When you'd scream I'd fight away all of your fears  
And I held your hand through all of these years  
But you still have  
All of me_

_You used to captivate me  
By your resonating light  
Now I'm bound by the life you left behind  
Your face it haunts  
My once pleasant dreams  
Your voice it chased away  
All the sanity in me_

_These wounds won't seem to heal  
This pain is just too real  
There's just too much that time cannot erase_

_When you cried I'd wipe away all of your tears  
When you'd scream I'd fight away all of your fears  
And I held your hand through all of these years  
But you still have  
All of me_

_I've tried so hard to tell myself that you're gone  
But though you're still with me  
I've been alone all along_

_When you cried I'd wipe away all of your tears  
When you'd scream I'd fight away all of your fears  
And I held your hand through all of these years  
But you still have  
All of me_

Tears swam in her eyes as she finished singing. That had been one of her favourite childhood songs. Who could have known that it could hold so much truth for her? Who could have known that it would be the song to describe her existence? Because that's what she was doing. She wasn't living. She was simply existing.

Wicked laughter brought her away from her despairing thoughts. She glanced around to see Death Eaters surrounding her. She stood quickly, grasping her wand tightly in front of her. She was met with laughter again.

"What do we have here?" hissed a voice in the darkness. Red eyes gleamed at her through the blackness of the night.

"Voldemort," she spat, inwardly cursing herself for not being more cautious.

"What do you want from me?" she asked, her voice husky from crying.

"I want you, Miss Granger," he said silkily. He stepped out of the shadows and she barely suppressed a gasp. Gone was the snake-like creature that he had been. In front of her was a handsome, young man. He was just like Harry had described him from their encounter in the Chamber of Secrets.

"Why?" she demanded.

"Why?" He paused for a moment, turning to look into the darkness. "There are a number of reasons, my dear. You are the most intelligent witch of your generation and your mind could be invaluable to me. You are also Harry Potter's most trusted friend, his loyal confidante."

She gave him no reaction to her words, but inwardly the harshness of her situation and the pain that she felt because of it reared its ugly head yet again as she was forced to remember how Harry thought of her. She was nothing more than a loyal friend in his eyes. She would never be seen as anything else. She'd wasted half her life pining over him, throwing away any chance of love.

Voldemort stared at her as she pulled herself out of her thoughts. His lips were curved into a slight smile that suggested that he knew what was running through her mind.

"Come with me. With me, you shall be treated like a Queen, just like you deserve." He held out his hand to her, inviting her to join him by his side.

She stared at his offered hand. No matter how much pain he put her through, she still loved him with every fibre of her being and she could never betray him like this. It went against everything she believed in.

"Your flattery will not work on me," she said, holding her head up high.

"You will not join me?" His eyes narrowed angrily.

"Never."

His wicked laughter once again enveloped them. "Then I shall make you suffer and this in turn will cause even more suffering for Potter, more than anyone else that I've killed."

"You're all talk. Why don't you cut the crap and torture me then?"

Voldemort sneered at the girl stood before him. "I will have you begging for death before I'm finished with you, Miss Granger."

She smirked at him. "I'm never going to beg for anything from you."

"Crucio!" he shouted, pointing his wand at her.

She dropped to her knees as the pain coursed through her body but she would never let him have the satisfaction. He circled her like a predator would to its prey before it struck. He ordered two more of his Death Eaters to attack her with the Cruciatus curse but still she didn't scream or beg, even though it felt like her blood was on fire in her veins. Her body was convulsing but not a single sound escaped her lips. If she was going to her, then she would die with dignity.

She had no idea how long that she endured the curses when the others arrived. She fell limply to the ground as the curses were lifted, unable to control her still convulsing body anymore. Every inch of her seared with pain. Her body screamed for some kind of release from torture. Summoning up all of her remaining energy that she had, she turned her head to see what was happening. All that she could focus on was Voldemort and Harry duelling. She'd never seen Harry like this. His face was contorted with pure anger and his body was tense as he shot curse after curse at his enemy. In his eyes burned a loathing that could never be rivalled. This magnitude of rage and hatred was fuelling his abilities and she could see Voldemort weakening.

Finally, he yelled 'Avada Kedavra'. Their wands locked but Harry's anger made Voldemort unable to control his wand. And then it was over. Voldemort was dead. The screams of his servants filled the air as the Dark Mark linking them to their Master drained their life away, killing them slowly and painfully.

Harry rushed over to Hermione's motionless body, silently praying that she was still alive. He had seen the pure agony in her eyes and dreaded to think how long she'd been under those curses. He gathered her into his arms, gently rushing back the hair from her face. He tenderly cupped her cheek, tears clouding his vision as she didn't move or respond to him.

"I'm sorry Hermione, for so many things. I should have got here sooner. I should never have let you out of my sight. I should've been able to protect you. And I should have told you every day how much you mean to me...how much I love you." He rubbed furiously at his tears. "I'm sorry, love."

He sat there, holding her body to him, wishing he could turn back time. He was startled when he felt a soft hand against his cheek. He looked at her, only to see her smiling softly at him.

"It's about time that you said that. I'd lost all hope," she confessed.

"God, Hermione. I'd never been so scared. I thought that I'd lost you." She smiled weakly up at him.

" You could never lose me. I'm always here for you."

"And I take that for granted. I'm so stupid!"

"I'm alright Harry. There's no need to beat yourself up over this."

"You're not alright," he disagreed. "You had at least 3 Cruciatus curses on you. We need to get you checked over."

He stood, carrying her in his arms with ease. She snuggled closer to him, needing to feel the warmth of his skin against her cheek. His steady heartbeat soothed her, calming her in a way that she didn't know was possible.

"Can you ever forgive me, Hermione? For being so blind?" he whispered in her ear, sending shivers down her spine as he did so. She looked up at him and smiled, a smile so beautiful that it made his breath catch in his throat.

"You're always forgiven."

"I love you, Hermione," he told her, his green eyes sparkling.

"I love you too, Harry." She closed her eyes, finally feeling at peace. "Always and forever."


End file.
